Egypt and South Korea have taken a major step to deepen economic cooperation, with Hassan El-Khatib, Egypt’s Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade, and Yeo Han-koo, South Korea’s Minister of Trade, Industry, and Resources, signing a joint statement on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the two countries.

The signing, held during a bilateral meeting attended by senior officials from both sides, including Mohamed El-Gossaki, CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI), and Ambassador Amr Hamza, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Asian and Pacific Affairs, establishes a comprehensive institutional framework to expand collaboration in investment, technology transfer, industrial development, capacity building, and trade liberalisation.

El-Khatib described the agreement as a strategic framework for investment cooperation across priority sectors such as high-tech industries, agriculture, renewable energy, transport, infrastructure, and manufacturing. He noted that the discussions build on constructive talks held late last year and follow up on a joint feasibility study conducted under a memorandum of understanding signed in January 2022. 

“The CEPA aims to foster deeper economic ties, promote knowledge transfer, and enhance investment flows between Egypt and South Korea, while encouraging Korean participation in Egypt’s large-scale national projects, particularly in the Suez Canal Economic Zone,” El-Khatib said.

He added that the partnership would also support joint industrial projects leveraging Egypt’s raw materials and manufacturing capacities, targeting sectors including furniture, glass, artificial pearls, crystal, marble, ceramics, pharmaceuticals, ready-made garments, electrical cables, and telecommunications products. El-Khatib emphasised Egypt’s interest in adopting advanced Korean technologies and smart solutions not only for bilateral cooperation but also as a gateway for technology transfer to African markets, positioning Egypt as a regional hub.

Minister Yeo Han-koo expressed satisfaction with the visit and reaffirmed South Korea’s commitment to strengthening bilateral economic ties. He described Egypt as a key regional partner with a large market and strategic geographic location, offering Korean companies access to regional and African markets and opportunities for industrial and investment collaboration.

GAFI CEO Mohamed El-Gossaki said the authority is reviewing South Korean investments in Egypt with a proactive approach to ensure smooth implementation and mitigate potential challenges, particularly in priority sectors such as technology, automotive, and energy.

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